Finally back from Midsouthcon 24, and as usual it was full of surprises. I've been going to the con since the fourth or fifth one, and attending this year as the comics guest of honor was a real, well, honor!
A cool extra this year came from Dark Horse, which, working wth programming coordinator Carlin Stuart, provided enough copies of the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic/Rebellion special for everyone in the show.
The panels were exceptionaly well attended this year -- quite a contrast to that strange year when the Transportation Security Administration took over the hotel and we all wound up meeting in the hotel restaurant. Friday night's comics-writing panel with Rich Burlew of Order of the Stick and webcomics creator Orion generated a lot of great questions -- I'll be looking at adding some kind of seminar for the educational track next time out. Saturday's Knights of the Old Republic panel was a lot of fun, too. And thanks to the brave attendees who made that 9 a.m. Sunday morning panel -- where we all decided not to turn the lights on in the panel room because it was waaaaay too early...
It was also great to meet author David Weber, a fellow Horatio Hornblower fanatic -- as well as all of this year's guests.
I must say there was a sense of deja vu in watching the University of Memphis playing in the NCAA tournament at the con -- we were doing the same thing at the con back in the mid-1980s, back when it was still called Memphis State. Sorry to see the Tigers lose, but at least I came out OK in the office pool in spite of that. I can quit now...